July 28, 2002: The Results of Exercise, Thankful For

Hi,

This weekend, I watched two movies, "Bourne Identity" and "Road to
Perdition". They are both very good and gripping. Road to Perdition is
long and sad, but the acting is very good.

A friend of mine from my church in LA, Theresa Huang, is looking for a
female roommate. She writes:

I live in West LA near the 405 and 10. It's in a safe neighborhood, 2
bedroom 2 bathroom place. There's air conditioning, dish washer, garbage
disposal etc. There's laundry in the building as well. The cost is
$656.50 per month, not including utilities.

If you know anyone who may be interested, please contact her at:
thuang@alum.mit.edu.

Another friend of mine from my church in Boston, Jennifer Ho, is also
looking for a roommate in Philadelphia. She writes:

Looking for a female housemate to share a lovely house with friendly,
smiling housemates.
Three story house has four bedrooms, washer and dryer, small backyard, 1.5
bathrooms, basement. Located several blocks from Main Street, Manayunk,
scenic Kelly Drive, and highway access to I-76 (~15-20 minute drive/ train
ride to Center City, ~10 minute walk to train station). Free street
parking. Rent is $375 plus utilities. Room is available now. If
interested, please e-mail Jenn (jennho@alum.mit.edu).

This week's thought provoking question is inspired by the "Bourne
Identity": "If you woke up in a strange place and had no idea who are you,
what would you do?"

This week's humor and inspirational pieces were forwarded by Jennifer
Deniega and Valerie Cheung, respectively.

Enjoy!

-Josh.
_________________________________

The Results of Exercise

It is well documented that for every minute that you exercise, you add one
minute to your life. This enables you at 85 years old to spend an
additional 5 months in a nursing home at $5000 per month.

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was 60. Now she's
97 years old and we don't know where the hell she is.

The only reason I would take up exercising is so that I could hear heavy
breathing again.

I joined a health club last year, spent about 400 bucks. Haven't lost a
pound. Apparently you have to show up.

I have to exercise early in the morning before my brain figures out what
I'm doing.

I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.

I have flabby thighs, but fortunately my stomach covers them.

The advantage of exercising every day is that you die healthier.

If you are going to try cross-country skiing, start with a small country.

And last but not least: I don't exercise because it makes the ice jump
right out of my glass.

You could run this over to one of your friends but why not just e-mail it
to them!
_________________________________

(Sorry for the large cap. I didn't want to take the time to retype the
whole thing in small cap.)

I AM THANKFUL FOR ......

THE TEENAGER WHO IS NOT DOING DISHES BUT IS WATCHING TV., BECAUSE THAT
MEANS HE/SHE IS AT HOME AND NOT ON THE STREETS.

FOR THE TAXES THAT I PAY, BECAUSE IT MEANS THAT I AM EMPLOYED.

FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY, BECAUSE IT MEANS THAT I HAVE BEEN
SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS.

FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG, BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE ENOUGH
TO EAT.

FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK, BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM OUT IN THE
SUNSHINE.

FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING, WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING, AND GUTTERS THAT
NEED FIXING, BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME.

FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING I HEAR ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT, BECAUSE IT MEANS
THAT WE HAVE FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

FOR THE PARKING SPOT I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT, BECAUSE IT
MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING AND THAT I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH
TRANSPORTATION.

FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL, BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM WARM.

FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH THAT SINGS OFF KEY, BECAUSE IT MEANS THAT
I CAN HEAR.

FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING, BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE CLOTHES TO
WEAR.

FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES AT THE END OF THE DAY, BECAUSE IT MEANS I
HAVE BEEN CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.

FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS, BECAUSE IT MEANS
THAT I AM ALIVE. (even when it's so blasted dark and cold!)

AND FINALLY.......

FOR TOO MUCH E-MAIL, BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE THINKING OF ME.

(SEND THIS TO SOMEONE YOU CARE ABOUT, AND WHEN YOU THINK YOUR LIFE IS SO
BAD, READ THIS AGAIN.)

July 22, 2002: Chihuahua, Important Lesson

Hi,

It's been a while since I wrote about my job. Last week, I just started a
new role at my project here in Cleveland. I am now a shift leader for the
afternoon shift, which means that my work hours are from 1:30 pm to 11:30
pm. I am enjoying the experience so far. Also, it will be a very good
learning experience for me to supervise about 10 press operators and
finishing & packaging operators. They are very nice people, but are all
union members, and range from mid-30 to mid-60 years old. So, it will be
quite a challenge to motivate them to change, which is why it is a good
learning experience for me. Eventually, I will rotate to being a shift
leader for the midnight shift and day shift.

I found out that one of my colleagues, Sheila, has been diagnosed with
brain and lung cancer. She is undergoing radiation and chemotherapy.
Please pray for her and her family. Another of my colleague, Denny, his
father passed away. Please pray for his family. Thanks for your prayers!

This past weekend, two of my Avery colleagues from Singapore and Thailand
came to visit Cleveland for work, so I met up with them on Saturday and
Sunday.

This week's thought provoking question is: "If you only had 6 months to
live, how would you want to spend your time?"

This week's humor and inspirational pieces were forwarded by Anna Man and
Jennifer Deniega, respectively.

Enjoy!

-Josh.
_________________________________

Chihuahua

The Taco Bell Chihuahua, a Doberman and a Bulldog are in a bar having a
drink when a great-looking female Collie comes up to them and says,
"Whoever can say liver and cheese in a sentence can have me."

So the Doberman says, "I love liver and cheese." The Collie replies,
"That's not good enough."

The Bulldog says, "I hate liver and cheese." She says, "That's not creative
enough."

Finally, the Chihuahua says, "Liver alone . . . cheese mine."
_________________________________

Important Lesson

During my second month of nursing school, our professor gave us a pop quiz.
I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, until
I read the last one:

"What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several
times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50s, but how would I know her
name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before
class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our
quiz grade. "Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers, you will
meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and
care, even if all you do is smile and say 'hello.'" I've never forgotten
that lesson. I also learned that her name was Dorothy.

July 7, 2002: Aiya!

Hi,

I hope you had a very good July 4th weekend. I just got back early this
morning from Singapore. It took me about a day and a half to fly to
Singapore each way. I had to stop at all these cities (round-trip) to wait
for connecting flights: Denver, San Francisco, Seoul, Hong Kong, and
Chicago.

Overall, I had a very good trip to Singapore, even though it was too short.
Melissa and I spent a lot of time visiting her family and many relatives.
Another highlight of our trip was a "vacation within a vacation" to Bintan.
We went to this spa called "Asmara", where we got massages in an seaside
outdoor pavilion called "bale" in Indonesian. Surprisingly, even though it
was a hot sunny day, inside the pavilion, it was quite cool and breezy.

Another interesting place we went was a restaurant called "Shimizu". My
friends Chris and Annie took us to lunch at this Japanese restaurant. They
are known for have a hot-pot in a "paper" pot. The paper is made of some
sort of flame resistant material. It goes directly over the fire from
heated rocks, and cooks the food very quickly.

I'll post some pictures from the trip next week.

This week's thought provoking question is: "If you could memorize one book
from history in its entirety, which book would you want it to be?"

This week's humor piece is one of my favorites. I first sent it out in
1999 and several people commented that it was very funny. It was
originally forwarded from Tina Sze. (Ranch 99 is a huge Chinese
supermarket chain in California).

Enjoy!

-Josh.
_________________________________

Aiya!

I had a craving for a sweet taste of childhood the other day; so I went
shopping for a can of grass jelly. I was putting said treat into my cart
and looking for my Ranch 99 VIP card when a woman with three kids in tow
ran into my cart. At that moment, both of us said, "Aiya." The children
giggled, she apologized, and I quickly replied, "M'sai...No apology
needed."

Although it was a minor exchange, I later realized that Aiya is more
than just two characters; it is part of the spirit of being Chinese...in
a moment of surprise I could've said just about anything- my reaction
was to say Aiya. I was surprised that I would instinctively use my
mother's tongue because I've always known that I don't speak Cantonese
well. No matter how far removed I've become as an American, there is
something at my core that is Chinese.

I decided to conduct informal research about Aiya. First, I went to a
national bookstore chain to review its Chinese language materials. I
thumbed through all the Chinese language materials, but couldn't find
any vocabulary drill including Aiya. Seeing that the publishers of
tourist books were not going to be helpful, I decided to observe its use
in the community. I clipped my cell phone to my belt, grabbed a couple
of bakery pink boxes and sat around San Francisco's Portsmouth Square
drinking 7-Up and eating dim sum. Lo and behold, the heard Aiya used in
a variety of ways. Based on my personal experience and this observation,
I've developed a personal understanding of Aiya.

Aiya is 24-carat Chinese gold. Aiya is more than just two characters; it
is part of the spirit of being Chinese and may even go back to
antiquity. It is used wherever the Chinese have been in the diaspora of
the last sesquicentennial.

How you say Aiya can say volumes about your state of mind. For example,
when the problem is minor, I can say "Aiya" in a short/curt manner.
However when I am extremely stressed, I can draw it out to nearly five
seconds. (I'm planning an experiment where I get a room full of people
to meditate using it as a mantra. With practice, I might get them to
draw out Aiya even longer.)

To explain more deeply how to use Aiya, imagine a worker slaving on the
Great Wall when he accidentally drops a brick (a quickie Aiya)...on the
work foreman (Aiya!!)- which gets him thrown into the wall to perish an
agonizing death (AIYA!!!!)

As you read the following ways Aiya can be used, the mental image to
solicit is to picture any of the mothers from Amy Tan's The Joy Luck
Club. For those who have met anyone in my family, you can picture one of
my relatives instead:

Surprise: "Aiya! A surprise party for me?"

Joy: "Aiya! You got 5 out of 6 in Lotto!"

Distaste: "You expect me to drink that herbal medicine concoction of
yours? Aiya!"

Doubt: "Do I have to wear that lemon yellow/lime green sweater my mother
made? I wonder if she would notice if I 'accidentally' donated it to
Goodwill? Aiya."

Awe: "Your son got accepted into Harvard Law School!?! Aiya!"

Irritation: "Clean your room. Aiya! Why you live like a pig?"

Large astonishment: "Aiya! She switch majors from Business to Art
History!"

Disapproval: "Report Card-5 A, 1 B? Always a B in Math. Aiya." (Actual
quote from my mother when I was a sophomore in high school.)

Shock: "What? Ketchup on Yang Chow Fried Rice...Aiya!"

Lamentation: "Aiya...why me...ungrateful child... Aiya." (Probably what
my mother is thinking when she reads this.)

Outrage: "Never clean your rice cooker with that steel scouring pad!
Aiya!"

Verge of internal combustion: "I can't deal with the family asking when
and if I'm getting married! Ai-yaaa!"

Aiya is an all-purpose phrase that comes from deep in the soul. Aiya is
both simple and complex: on one hand it is a couple of Chinese
characters, on the other hand it can be a whole speech describing the
state you are in. Aiya says "I'm afraid", "I'm in pain", "I don't
believe it." It is an exclamation of exuberance, a shout of hurt, a cry
of fear, and the reflex of being startled, and the embrace of joy.

It is unfortunate that English has no equivalent to Aiya. It saddens me
that American English doesn't afford me a fun phrase to emote.
"Shucks", "Darn" and the plethora of swear words cannot convey what Aiya
can. So, I'm going to propose that we start an initiative for American
English should grab on Aiya or the Yiddish "Oy" for our use.

So the next time you go to a teahouse for dim sum or decide to go
shopping at an Asian market, listen to the lively banter as friends and
families meet. It's a wonderfully vibrant, alive community out there.
Who knows, you just might get caught up the lyrical rhythm of the
people. Aiya, what fun!